JapanxReader: Sure, Why Not?

"Okay, this time, imagine it's for real!" you told yourself.

Closing your eyes, you envisioned having three judges watching you, along with several other people. You opened your eyes, took a deep breath, positioned your fingers over the piano keys and started playing.

Everything went well for the first minute or so. Then you started hitting one wrong note after another. You tensed as you played, and that only made you grow more tired.

Abruptly, you stopped. You slid your hands off of the piano and plonked your head on the keys, creating a dissonant sound. You groaned.

Your competition was in two days, and to your frustration, the piece was not going the way you wanted it to. Because of it, you had been staying in the practice rooms until late at night. In fact, it had just passed midnight.

You picked yourself back up, sighing a bit. 'I need a break…' you thought tiredly.

"Maybe an easy song?" you mused.

After rifling through various pieces in your head, you settled on a calming one that you really liked- 'Kiss the Rain', by Yiruma.

As you started, your mind settled, and your muscles loosened as you played the soothing tune. You smiled for the first time in days as you played. While the song was going, you didn't think of anything but how beautiful the music was. And this trance lasted until the very last note.

You sighed again, but happily this time. That had helped more than you thought.

"Okay, let's try this again…"

As you placed your hands on the keys once more, the door to the room opened, revealing a silhouette of a man with a violin case. You were pretty surprised- you were sure you were the only one here, besides Roderick- and he would have no reason to interrupt you.

"Oh! Please excuse me, I did not know anybody else was here…" a vaguely familiar voice sounded.

You relaxed a bit, but were still puzzled.

"Hello Kiku, it's fine. Are you practicing for the competition too?" you asked, smiling.

You had seen the Japanese man around the campus now and again, and he was in your music class as well. The two of you talked once in a while, and you liked him well enough. His quiet nature was a nice break from all of the loud students surrounding you.

"The HSMF? Yes. I suppose you are doing the same?" he inquired politely.

You smiled weakly. "Yeah, I was… I think I'm getting too stressed out about it," you sighed, then quickly changed the subject. "Well, can I hear what you're going to play?"

Kiku blushed lightly. "I guess I can…"

He walked over to the extra chair and took out his instrument. He got into position, and took another moment before beginning his song.

You smiled widely as the piece began. Salut d'amour. You sat back and watched the Japanese man play- you never had the chance before. He was relaxed the entire time, and you got the feeling that he was enjoying himself. In the back of your mind, you were glad that the two of you were competing in different categories- otherwise, you were sure you would have lost to him.

As he ended, you sat up again and clapped for him.

"That was so beautiful!" you squealed. "Really, that was amazing!"

Kiku's face turned pink again. "T-thank you…" he murmured as he put his violin away.

Turning back to you, he asked shyly, "What are you playing?"

"Dr. Gradus Ad Parnassum by Debussy," you sighed.

"May I hear you play?"

You stiffened a bit, but grinned and said, "Sure, why not?"

You turned back around, and set your hands down. Before you started, you thought about Kiku's attitude as he played. 'I'm going to play like that' you thought determinedly. Smiling slightly, you took a breath, let yourself relax, and began.

The music flowed around you and you lost yourself, much like you did when you played 'Kiss the Rain'. You forgot everything around you, including the man in the room. At the end, you sat up and squealed and bounced in your seat in glee. Everything had gone perfectly!

"That was marvelous…" a quiet voice said behind you.

You turned around, remembering Kiku again and giggled.

"First time getting it perfect too!" you said cheerily.

You saw the surprise in his eyes as he replied, "That is hard to believe… Actually, it was my first time getting it perfect as well."

You laughed at that. "Maybe we're each other's lucky charms!"

Kiku joined your laughter, though his was much quieter. "Yes, maybe."

After your laugher died down, you were struck with an idea.

"Hey, Kiku? If I went to your category to support you, would you come to support me in mine?" you asked shyly.

You glanced up to see his face go red.

"I-I would love to…" he finally replied. "On one condition though."

You raised an eyebrow. "Sure, what's it?"

"Afterwards, do you- no, may I take you for a walk in the park to see the flowers?" he asked hurriedly.

You sat there in surprise. You barely knew this guy, and he was asking you on a date? Well, it was conditional, but anyway. But on the other hand, what you did know about him, you liked, and you knew that it must have been very difficult for him to work up the courage to ask you something like this. Besides, a part of you wanted to get to know him better.

You smiled up at him. "Sure, why not?"